Tile-counting device



LE ROY BISHOP TILE-COUNTING Oct. 20, 1953 DEVI CE Filed March 13, 1951 Patented Oct. 29, 1953 P ()FFICE -JTENT TILE- COUNTING DEVICE Le Roy D. Bishop,

Armstrong Cork Kankakee, IlL, assignor to (Zornpany,

Lancaster, Pa., a

corporation of Pennsylvania Application March 13, 1951, Serial No. 215,309

4 Claims. 1

This invention relates particularly to a tilecounting device, although the invention will be applicable in counting other articles of a similar nature. The invention embodies the basic principles of the counting device of application Serial No. 129,998, filed November 29, 1949, and entitled Method and Apparatus for Counting Tiles and Like Articles, of which I am a coinventor with Edward L. Barnett, Ellsworth K. Gentel, and Howard H. Leman.

The primary obiect of the invention is to provide an arrangement which will facilitate upward movement of the stack of tiles or like articles being counted as the same are brought into engagement seriatim with the stepped articlereceiving plate which is moved into en agement with the articles in the stack and performs the counting operation as disclosed in the copending application above referred to.

Another obiect of the invention is to provide a movable supporting plate arran ement for the stack which will permit the stacking of a large number of tiles in position to be counted, facilitating manual feeding of the machine.

Other objects of the invention will become apparent from consideration of the following description of a preferred embodiment of the invention illustrated in the attached drawing, in which:

Figure l is a perspective view of a portion of a tile-counting machine having incorporated therein the improvements of the present invention;

Figure 2 is a diagrammatic view illustrating the functionin of the apparatus of Figure l in the counting of tiles; and

Figure 3 is a detailed diagrammatic view to enlarged scale illustrating one of the counting plates of Figures 1 and 2.

As shown in Figure 1, there is mounted on the machine frame 2 a support 3 for the articles to be counted. The support is mounted in an inclined position as shown in Figures 1 and 2. This support includes a base member 4 and a movable plate member 5 whi h is disposed at an angle of 90 with respect to the base member a so that a stack of articles 6 to be counted may be positioned upon the support 3 with the lowermost tile in the stack lyin on the base support and one ed e of each of the tiles in the stack lying in engagement with the movable plate It should be borne in mind that in 2 a counting plate I has moved the counted articles from their normal at rest position on the support.

The plate 5 is mounted for free movement substantially in the plane of the flat faces thereof. This is accomplished in the embodiment shown in Figure 1 by providing four rollers 8 which may be in the nature of ball bearings having their outer races passing through a stationary mounting plate 9 secured by bolts it to the frame 2 of the machine. Brackets having gudgeons l2 integrally formed thereon are secured to the mounting plate 9 by bolts !3. The gudgeons i2 are received within the inner races of the roller bearing members 3. The plate 5 is provided with a pair of milled ways I l along the two longitudinal edges thereof, and the outer races of the rollers 8 are received in these ways.

The plate 5 and the mounting plate 9 are provided with slots !5 adapted to pass the counting plates i which are mounted on a chain 16 for movement in the direction of the arrow shown in Figure 1. The movable plate 5 has a tongue I! which extends between the slots 15 and is arranged to engage the upper surface of the base member l of the support This limits downward movement of the movable plate 5. Upward movement of the plate 5 may be unrestricted, such movement in an upward direction occurring as the counting plates 1 are brought into engagement with the stack of tiles 6.

The counting plates are provided with a plurality of steps having article-en aging stops thereon spaced apart a distance greater than the maximum thickness of the articles to be counted, and there are inclined article-separating surfaces each extending from a point which is disposed above one article-engaging stop a distance less than the minimum thickness of the articles to be counted to the next adjacent article-engaging stop. As shown in Figure 3, the counting plates have risers R which constitute stops against which the articles T to be counted may be abutted and inclined lands L which constitute article-separating or elevating surfaces which extend from the top of one riser to the bottom of the next upper riser. In order to provide for the reception of a single tile in each of the steps of the counting plate, the risers are dimensioned so that each one is less in hei ht (when disposed as shown in Figure 3) than the minimum thickness dimension of the articles being counted. The spacing from the bottom of one riser to the bottom of the next riser (when disposed as shown in Figure 3) is equal to or greater than the maximum thickness of the articles being counted. Thus as the articles move into position in engagement with the stops, there is a sli ht upward movement of the stack; for, as pointed out above, the stops are spaced apart a distance greater than the maximum thickness of the articles to be cou .ted. By providing for free sliding movement of the plate it is possible to dispose a large stack of tiles on the support, because the efiort required to elevate the stack is minimized by the free sliding movement of the plate 5 which supports the tiles on edge.

Reference is made to the copending application for the details of the countin mechanism including the stepped counting plates, the driving mechanism, and the general arrangement of the machine.

In the operation of the device, a stack of tiles 5 is disposed upon the support 3 with the stack being disposed in an inclined position with the lower edge of each or" the tiles in the stack lying in enga ement with the movable plate =5 and with the lowermost tile in the stack resting on the base member 4. The ton ue ll of the movable 7 plate 5 will lie in en agement with the base member 4. The chain it, moving in the direction of the arrow, will bring the counting plates i into enga ement with the stack 6, with the lowermost article in the stack being enga ed by the first or lowermost stop on the counting plates l and the remainder of the tiles in the stack being moved upwardly along the inclined article-separating surfaces of the counting plates until the second article engages its stop; whereupon the third article and all of those disposed thereabove in the stack are elevated. This action continues until each of the steps carries an article. As the stack is elevated durin this counting operation, the movable plate 5 slides freely on the rollers 8 in a direction perpendicular to the base member 4; and as soon as the travelling counting plates 1 have moved out from under the stack, the articles remaining in the stack fall by gravity into position on the base member s. Simultaneously therewith the plate 5 falls to its lower position with the ton ue I! in engagement with the base member 4. As the operation of the machine continues, the next set of counting plates comes into engagement with the remaining articles in the stack and the counting of a new group is effected. The machine tender continues to supply to the stack fresh tiles to be counted, and this may be accomplished during operation of the device, although it is preferred to have the operator add tiles to the stack at those intervals when the countin plates are out of engagement with the tiles in the stack.

I claim: v

1. In a device for counting tiles and like articles, a stepped member having a plurality of artiole-engagin stops thereon spaced apart a distance greater than the maximum thickness of the articles to be counted and inclined articleseparatin surfaces each extending from a point which is disposed above one articleengaging stop a distance less than the minimum thickness of the articles to be counted to the next adjacent articleen aging stop; a support for a stack of articles to be counted comprising a movable plate against which one of the edges of the articles in the stack may abut and means for mounting said plate for free movement substantially in the plane of the fiat faces thereof; and means for moving said stepped member with respect to said support to bring said stepped member into en agement with a stack of articles disposed on said support to dispose said articles in engagement with said article-engaging stops on said stepped member, said plate moving freely along its path of movement as said articles in engagement therewith are elevated by said stepped member.

2. In a device for counting tiles and like articles, a stepped member having a plurality of article-engaging stops thereon spaced apart a distance greater than the maximum thickness of the articles to be counted and inclined articleseparating surfaces each extending from a point which is disposed above one article-engaging stop a distance less than the minimum thickness of the articles to be counted to the next adjacent article-engaging stop; a support for a stack of articles to be counted comprising a movable plate against which one of the edges of the stack may abut and mounting means for said plate comprising a plurality of rollers upon which said movable plate is mounted for free movement substantially in the plane of the flat faces thereof; and means for moving said stepped member with respect to said support to bring said stepped member into engagement with a stack of articles disposed on said support to dispose said articles in engagement with said article-engaging stops on said stepped member, said plate moving freely along its path of movement as said articles in engagement therewith are elevated by said stepped member.

3. In a device for counting tiles and like articles, a stepped member having a plurality of article-engaging stops thereon spaced apart a distance greater than the maximum thickness of the articles to be counted and inclined articleseparating surfaces each extending from a point which is disposed above one article-engaging stop a distance less than the minimum thickness of the articles to be counted to the next adjacent artiole-engaging stop; a support for a stack of artielse to be counted comprising a base member for the reception of the stack with the lowermost tile in the stack lying in engagement therewith, a movable plate disposed substantially at right angles to the base member for engagement with one of the edges of the stack, and means for mounting said plate for free movement substantially in the plane of the flat faces thereof; and means for moving said stepped member with respect to said support to bring said stepped member into engagement with a stack of articles disposed on said support to dispose said articles in engagement with said article-engaging stops on said stepped member, said plate moving freely along its path of movement as said articles in engagement therewith are elevated by said stepped member.

4. In a device for counting tiles and like articles, a stepped member having a plurality of artiole-engaging stops thereon spaced apart a distance greater than the maximum thickness of the articles to be counted and inclined article-separating surfaces each extending from a point which is disposed above one article-engaging stop a distance less than the minimum thickness of the articles to be counted to the next adjacent article-engaging stop; a support for a stack of articles to be counted comprising a base member inclined to the horizontal for the reception of the stack with the lowermost tile in the stack lying in engagement therewith, a movable plate disposed substantially at right angles to the base member for engagement with one of the edges of the stack, mounting means for said plate comprising a plurality of rollers upon which said movable plate is mounted for free movement substantially in the plane of the flat faces thereof, and means on said plate and base member limit ing movement of said plate towards said base member; and means for moving said stepped member with respect to said support to bring said stepped member into engagement with a stack of articles disposed on said support to dispose said articles in engagement with said articleengaging stops on said stepped member, said plate moving freely along its path of movement as said articles in engagement therewith are elevated by said stepped member.

LE ROY D. BISHOP.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number 

